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This is a long
story. No one can fully explain how or why things
develop the way they do. Much of it is not only beyond
our control but beyond our ken. On the other hand, we
can see some of the roots here and there from which we
sprang. One of them is this vast and complex continent
of Latin America which gave birth to our dream and which
we are privileged to live in. It is frequently thought
of as the edge of the world, though
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our dream is to
make it the centre.
Not so much through spectacular or gigantic works but
through commitment to the struggle for the dignity of every
human person, whether of the favela, the hillside or the
forest.
The inspiration and the help towards the attainment of this
goal came from different sources. One of them was the
development, from the 1960s onwards, here in Latin America,
of a Theology of Liberation that enabled us to look at life
from the ground up and not just from the clouds. Another
factor that helped us along, was the presence of a warm and
welcoming people whose dream of a land where there is no
evil, had survived centuries abuse and abandonment. Finally,
there was amongst us, a sense of holy indignation which
could not accept as natural, the suffering of so many.
It was from these beginnings that a few seeds began to be
planted among the children and young people of the shanty
towns. Among adults who could neither read or write. Among
those who felt powerless to do anything to change their lot.
These seeds, after a long period of germination under the
ground, eventually began to spring up here and there,
fragile yet beautiful flowers of many colours, bringing with
them, joy, hope and the conviction that we may not be so
powerless after all.
Among these beautiful flowers, we are privileged to count
the City of the Angels Foundation, with its programme of
Retreats for Peace, in which children and adolescents from
the shanty towns of the City of Sao Paulo are the main
protagonists. It is in this special place that we hope
eventually, when we have the resources, to build
eco-friendly constructions to cater for the activities that
are already taking place there now. Among these
constructions, we envisage a chapel, a bakery, dormitories,
an amphi-theatre, a dining room, a guest house and a
self-sustaining generator. To do all this ecologically,
represents our commitment to care and respect for the planet
that is our home.
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Another of
these flowers is the Centro Cultural in the favela of Vila
Prudente, with its choir of 28 children and musicians, its
artists, sculptors, mosaic workers, folk-lore dancers,
theatre actors, story tellers, drummers and guitarists. Yet
another flower is our Information Technology Centre which
runs courses in computation skills for access to the job
market, for children and youth of five favela communities in
our area. Then there is the Re-cycling Cooperative composed
of 21 families whose livelihood depends of gathering paper,
scrap iron, plastic and other materials thrown out as
useless, processing them into separate items and selling
them on to recycling yards. This project has proved to be a
singular experience of transformation from individualistic
thinking and living to collaboration and income generating
hope.
Another special flower is the partnership between the favela
of Vila Prudente in which children from the favela
participate with local special needs handicapped children in
a project called Our Art Cooperative, producing together,
works of art and craft items for sale. This Cooperative was
founded by Rosana Juscelino and can be looked up at the
following address.
www.nossacooperarte.blog.spot.com
Another of our beautiful flowers is the creche Julio Cesar
Aguiar which was built by the efforts of the community of
the favela Vila Prudente and which allows parents to leave
their children all day in the caring hands of a staff of
professionals, while the parents themselves, go to or look
for work.
And helping all this to happen, we have the flower which is
the Movement for the Defence of the Shanty Town People (MDF),
which since 1979, has been active in the Episcopal Region of
Belem in the Eastern part of Sao Paulo city. Its main areas
of action have been in leadership formation, the defence of
the shanty town people against eviction and violence, and
the right of access to housing, the land, health, education
and citizenship.
Finally, we cannot fail to say that our existence and our
continuity would have been brief had it not been for the
network of so many people from all walks of life, most of
whom prefer to remain in the background. It is because they
have stretched their hands out across oceans and continents,
that we have experienced and can testify to the miracle, not
just of our survival, but of our hope that we can play a
part in the dream of another possible world for all the
children of the earth.
NB. This work is done in
partnership with and monitored by the Council for the
Protection of Children and Adolescents. Contact:
sitiodosanjos@sitiodosanjos.net.br tel: 55 11 4822 1362
- site:
www.sitiodosanjos.net.br |
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